. Earth Science News .
WHITE OUT
easyJet scraps Berlin flights due to de-icer shortage

Hundreds trapped in cars as snowstorm hits Estonia
Tallinn (AFP) Dec 10, 2010 - Emergency services in Estonia urged residents in the Baltic state's north to stay at home Friday after heavy snowfalls which left hundreds trapped in their vehicles. "Very difficult weather conditions are preventing the clearing of snow from roads," Reimo Raja, a spokesman for the Estonian rescue board, told the Baltic News Service. "Snow clearance on the main roads is complicated and secondary roads in Harju county and in Viru counties are not drivable right now," he said. Harju county includes the Estonian capital Tallinn, while the two Viru counties lie to the city's east, on the main highway to Russia.

Raja said that several hundred people were stranded on the highway, with cars, buses and trucks stuck in the snow. He warned that it could several hours to reach all snow-hit vehicles, and urged people to stay at home so as not to swell the jams. Much of Tallinn's ring-road was closed, with stranded trucks blocking traffic, while public transport in the city was still running, albeit with major delays. The Baltic nation of 1.3 million people is used to hard winters, but even it has been caught out by the scale of the snow. A sharp storm overnight brought some 20 centimetres (eight inches) of snow. Raja also said that in view of potential power outages residents should keep their mobile phones fully charged and have a candle or a flashlight at hand.
by Staff Writers
Berlin (AFP) Dec 10, 2010
British budget airline easyJet scrapped all flights leaving from a snow-covered Berlin on Friday morning because of what it called a "serious" shortage of de-icer to make its aircraft safe to fly.

On Thursday, some 200 flights operated by all airlines were scrapped at Berlin's two main international airports, about one third of those scheduled, a spokesman said, partly for the same reason.

Air Berlin, Germany's second-biggest airline after Lufthansa, said that there had been shortages in recent days, but that the situation had returned to normal on Friday.

"We think it is a structural problem. There are only a few firms in Europe (who make de-icer), leading to shortages across Europe, which could become a problem this winter," a spokeswoman told AFP.

Swiss chemicals firm Clariant, a major supplier of de-icer, said that heavy snow so far this winter had created "high demand all over Europe" and that production was running 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"Everyone had quite high demand but Berlin had very high demand," said company spokeswoman Stefanie Nehlsen, adding that the situation was expected to ease there swiftly.

"We have several trucks ready to unload in Berlin," she told AFP.

Particularly wet snow was also adding to the demand, with an aircraft requiring 10 times as much de-icer -- around 1,000 litres (265 gallons) -- than dry snow, she added.

GlobeGround, which de-ices planes at the German capital's two main airports Tegel and Schoenefeld, said that manufacturers were experiencing "drastic" problems not only in delivering to airports but also in production.

"GlobeGround's de-icer stocks have fallen dramatically. There are currently nine orders for Tegel and Schoenefeld that have not been made, many of them were supposed to have come two days ago," it said.

Frankfurt airport, Europe's third busiest, was not experiencing any shortages, however, and traffic was slowly getting back to normal after recent delays, with around 40 cancellations on Friday, a spokesman told AFP.

Heavy snow has also caused major delays on Germany's roads and railways in recent days, and fresh snow was falling in southern regions on Friday.

burs-stu/dlc



Share This Article With Planet Earth
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit
YahooMyWebYahooMyWeb GoogleGoogle FacebookFacebook



Related Links
It's A White Out at TerraDaily.com



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


WHITE OUT
Arctic blast causes European travel chaos
Paris (AFP) Dec 9, 2010
Icy roads paralysed much of the Paris region Thursday after the heaviest snow in a quarter of a century, while harsh weather in Germany hit flights and prompted major delays in rail travel. French Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux asked drivers not to travel unless absolutely necessary the day after 11 centimetres (more than four inches) of snow fell on Paris, the most in one day since 1987. ... read more







WHITE OUT
Flood-swept Czech town turns disaster into development

Facebook co-founders pledge wealth to charity

Britain to outsource search-and-rescue ops

Colombia mudslide toll rises to 46 dead

WHITE OUT
World's First Microlaser Emitting In 3-D

EU slaps huge fine on South Korea, Taiwan LCD cartel

Google says 300,000 Android phones activated daily

High hopes and hard realities for India's 35-dollar computer

WHITE OUT
Conditioning Reefs For The Future

Mobile 'revolution' eases Pacific isolation, poverty

EU 'loophole' allows shark finning

Laos inaugurates controversial hydropower dam

WHITE OUT
Greenland Ice Sheet Flow Driven By Short-Term Weather Extremes Not Gradual Warming

It's Time For Europe To Step Up Research In The Polar Regions

Glaciers melting fastest in South America, Alaska: UN

New Research Shows Rivers Cut Deep Notches In The Alps' Broad Glacial Valleys

WHITE OUT
New Discovery About How Flowering Time Of Plants Can Be Controlled

Argentine shepherds, farmers protect forests from soy

Plants Remember Winter To Bloom In Spring With Help Of Special Molecule

Shanghai halts sale of suspected 'dyed' oranges: report

WHITE OUT
Latin America counts the cost after deadly rains

More than 11,000 people evacuated in Albania floods

Ecuador downgrades active volcano warning

Rains leave rising death toll in Colombia, Venezuela

WHITE OUT
Gbagbo's rivals demand backing of I.Coast military

Leaked US cable says China has 'no morals' in Africa

Sudan heads toward breakup

Conservationists seek legal freeze of Tanzania road

WHITE OUT
Lost Civilization Under Persian Gulf

Babies' Biological Clocks Dramatically Affected By Birth Light Cycle

Seeing The World All Depends On Differen Visual Minds

Apes Unwilling To Gamble When Odds Are Uncertain


The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2010 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement